Lt. Gov. Murray to leave post: 'Difficult yet empowering decision'

Wednesday

May 22, 2013 at 9:00 AMMay 22, 2013 at 5:50 PM

Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray said he will step down to become president and chief executive officer of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce. "This was not a post that I sought," he said during a press conference at the Statehouse this afternoon.

By John J. Monahan TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Murray will step down next month to become president and chief executive officer of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce.

"This was not a post that I sought," he said during a press conference at the Statehouse this afternoon.

Mr. Murray, a former Worcester mayor, accepted the offer from the 2,300-member business organization, which voted on the hiring of Mr. Murray during a meeting at noon today.

"This has been a difficult yet empowering decision," he said at the press conference, where he was accompanied by Gov. Deval L. Patrick.

Mr. Murray will leave office as lieutenant governor June 2 and begin work at the chamber June 3, he said. He will replace Richard B. Kennedy, who is retiring after nine years in the post.

"This is completely about my family and about a job that provides opportunity," he said. "To me this is a right fit and a right decision."

Mr. Patrick praised Mr. Murray, calling him a friend who will always be part of his family. Mr. Murray, 44, has held elected positions for 15 years, the last six as lieutenant governor.

In January, he announced that he would not be running for governor in 2014. He cited demands of campaigning and a desire to spend time with his wife and two young daughters.

Mr. Murray, who was elected with Mr. Patrick in 2006 and again in 2010, saw his political standing tarnished by a 2011 high-speed car crash in which he drove off the road on Interstate 190 in Sterling. More recently, his ties to Michael McLaughlin, the troubled former housing director from Chelsea, have been the subject of investigations.

The Boston Globe reported that Mr. Murray will be paid more than $200,000 a year in his new role.

His current salary is just under $125,000 per year. Mr. Kennedy's salary is $150,000.

Chamber Board Chairman Richard P. Burke said Mr. Murray will be a strong leader of the business community, providing a keen focus on economic development.

"Tim Murray is a proven leader with a passion for economic development and the ability to lead the business community," Mr. Burke said. "This is a great day for the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce."

Worcester City Manager Michael O'Brien praised the decision.

"The Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce continues to support and help grow our local economy, and no one understands these opportunities better than Tim," Mr. O'Brien said. "It is a huge win for Central Mass. and Worcester. He is a respected leader with a proven track record of successes."

In an interview, Mr. Murray said that after he decided not to run for governor in January, chamber officials contacted him about the opening.

"Initially I just said, 'Look, I don't think this works, with the timing,' " Mr. Murray said, since he was planning to serve out his term.

But chamber officials made a renewed pitch about their plans to more aggressively promote Central Massachusetts and raise its stature in the region, seeking out more economic development opportunities.

"I started to think about it a little bit, and in many ways it's consistent with what I have doing for 15 years as lieutenant governor, as mayor, as a city councilor and even when I was on the Worcester Library Board," he said.

"Personally it makes a lot of sense — with a young family, my daughters have just turned 8 and 7 — and I'd have the ability to be closer to home. It's a unique job. It's not one that is going to be there in 2015," he said of the chamber opening.

Mr. Murray's decision not to run for governor came after controversy arose about his high-speed car crash and subsequent refusal to disclose cell phone records from the morning of the accident. More controversy erupted last year over his involvement with disgraced former Chelsea Housing Director Michael E. McLaughlin. McLaughlin was charged with fraudulent operations of the housing authority and concealing his excessive salary. Questions then surfaced about McLaughlin's fundraising role on behalf of Mr. Murray.

Mr. Murray submitted to interviews with prosecutors investigating Mr. McLaughlin, and he has not been charged with any wrongdoing.

Mr. Murray said the idea of leaving the office he has held for seven years was not easy.

"That's been the hard part. I have loved my time in elected office, and I think on the things that matter I am pretty good at it," Mr. Murray said, while acknowledging the help of others in the administration.

"We have the ability to not just come up with ideas but to get those ideas implemented," he said. He named examples such as bringing the CSX rail transfer project to fruition, bringing passenger service and upgrades to Worcester airport, making progress on homelessness and giving local mayors and community officials greater access to the governor's office and state resources.

Mr. Murray said the controversies over the car crash and investigation of Mr. McLaughlin were not central to bypassing a run for governor, but rather the demands it would have put on him and his family.

He said he tried to address questions about the McLaughlin scandal as best he could.

"I continue to try to work on the McLaughlin thing for a resolution," Mr. Murray said. "He misled a whole bunch of organizations and people in a whole variety of ways, including myself. That makes me angry and frustrated, and we are working to try to bring that to resolution and believe that we will at some point. But in the meantime this opportunity presented itself, and it's unique, and I am excited about it.

“It's bittersweet. I am going to be leaving a job I have enjoyed and a lot of good people," he said.

Mr. Murray said he spoke with Mr. Patrick about his decision to leave and said the governor viewed it with mixed feelings. "He, like myself, had a lot of mixed emotions and thoughts about it, but understood it's a unique opportunity.”

Noting the recent history of governors leaving before their terms finished, Mr. Murray said his decision is something of a twist on Beacon Hill. "It's ironic that the lieutenant governor is leaving and he is staying," Mr. Murray said of Mr. Patrick.

Mr. Murray will leave office while heading up the National Lieutenant Governors Association. The lieutenant governor's job will remain vacant until a new lieutenant governor takes office in 2015.